Copying-press.



PATENTED AUG. 9, 1904.

A. L. SNEED.

COPYING PRESS;

APPLICATION FILED JULY so, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

ZZZ 25 Z? 21 m I H G WITNESSES.

B y W A TTOHNE rs.

UNITED STATES Patented August 9, 1904. Y

PATENT OFFICE.

COPYING-PRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 767,315, dated August 9, 1904.

Application filed July 30, 1903.

T rtZZ whom, it may concern:

Be itknown that I, ARTHUR Lnwrs SNEED, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Glarks, in the parish of Caldwell and State of Louisiana, have invented a new and Improved Copying-Press,of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to improvements in copying-presses, the same being more especially designedfor press-copyingletters, manuscripts, and the like.

The object that I have in view is to produce a simple and compact structure wherein pro-; vision is made for the application of powerful pressure through a platen upon the work, the construction being such that very little effort is required on the part of the operator and the adjustment of the platen may be secured very quickly.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear in the course of the subjoined description, and the novelty will be defined by the annexed claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference inclicate corresponding parts in both the figures.

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a copying-press embodying my invention, and Fig. i 2 is a plan view thereof.

5 designates a bed, to which are attached upright posts 6, the latter serving to support a cross-head 7. These parts may be cast separately or in one piece; but I prefer to make the cross-head '1' v in a separate piece from the posts and to secure said cross-head firmly in place on the posts by suitable devices. The cross-head is provided with a vertical central passage 8, and the upper part of this crosshead is formed with a chamber 9. The crosshead is furthermore provided with a tubular boss 10, which is made in one piece therewith, and this boss extends into the chamber 9, as shown by Fig. 1; The upper part of the tubular boss is provided with a recess which surrounds the central passage 8, and thereby forms a ball-race 11;

12 designates a cap-piece, which is secured firmly to the upper part of the cross-head, said cap-piece having a short vertical passage Serial N0..167,576. (No model- 13, which is in vertical alinement with the passage 8. The cap-piece is provided on its under side with an annular recess 15, and

around the vertical passage 13 in the cappiece is formed a conicalbearing 16.

17 designates a vertically-slidable platen, which is fitted to the posts 6 of the press-frame, so as to be limited to slidable movement thereby. This platen is provided with a socketcasting 18, which receives the lower headed end 19 of a threaded non-revoluble spindle 20. The end 19 of said spindle is secured by the casting 18 to the platen 17 in a way to hold the spindle from rotation, although the spindle is adapted to rise and fall. with the platen in a vertical direction. The spindle passes through the alined passages 8 13 of the cross.- head and the cap, and with this spindle engages a gear-nut 21. This nut is provided with a central female threaded opening in or- .der that it may engage with the male threads of the spindle 20, and said nut is housed within the chamber 9 in a way to have ball-bearing engagement with the boss '10 and the cone 16 of the cross-head and cap, respectively. The ball-race 11 forms acup into which is received the bearing-cone 22, which is integral with and depends from the gear-nut 21, and this cone is supported by a plurality of bearing-balls 23. v

The upper part of the gear-nut 21 is provided with an upstanding flange 24, which forms a cup or ball-race adapted to receive the cone 16 of the cap 12, and in this cup is contained another series of bearing-balls 25. 8 5 It will be seen that the gear-nut has ball-bearing engagement on its upper and lower surfaces with the cross-head and the cap, thus insuring the free rotation of the gear-nut within the frame of the press. This gear-nut is pro- 9 vided with a continuous series of bevel-gear teeth adapted to have intermeshing engagement with one or more bevel gear-pinions 26, the latter being contained in the chamber 9. Each gear-pinion 26 is secured firmly to the 95 inner end of a horizontal shaft 27, the latter being journaled in horizontal openings or bearings which are provided in the crosshead 7. Each shaft 27 is provided at its outer end with an enlarged spur-gear 28, disposed I00 at the side of the press-frame, and this gear meshes with a gear-pinion 29 of a balancewheel 30, the latter being loosely mounted on a stub-axle 31, secured firmly to one of the posts 6, said balance-wheel having a suitable crank 32 for its convenient manipulation. I

prefer to employ the two shafts and balancewheels, which are disposed on the respective sides of the frame, so as to make provision for the operation of the press from either side thereof; but it will be understood that only one shaft and one balance-wheel may be employed.

The operation of the press will be readily understood from the foregoing description, taken in connection with the drawings. It is evident that the balance-wheel may be easily turned for the purpose of rotating the shaft 27, which in turn rotates the gear-nut 21, so as to impart rising or falling movement to the spindle 20, the latter being held from rotation by the slidable engagement of the platen with the press-frame, whereby the platen may be raised and lowered by turning the balancewheel in the proper direction. The employment of the gearing enables me to secure a powerful action of the platen, and the parts are arranged to minimize the friction and wear, owing to the employment of the ballbearing at the point where the greatest pressure and thrust is sustained by the improved press.

Although I have shown and described my improvements in connection with a copyingpress, it will be understood that I do not desire to limit the use of my invention strictly to a press of this character, because the improvements may be employed in cider-presses, jack-screws, devices for raising and lowering weights, and other kinds of machinery which employ pressure devices.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent In an apparatus of the class described, the combination of a two-part bridge, one member of which has a post with a grooved upper end forming a ball-race, and the other member having a grooved under face producing a bearing-cone, an endwise movable spindle passing through the bridge, a gear-nut having threaded engagement with the spindle and disposed between the members of the bridge, said nut having on its under and top faces a bearing-cone and a ball-race which respectively cooperate with the ball-race and the cone on the lower and upper bridge members, antifriction-bearings confined in the respective races, means for driving the gear-nut, and a platen actuated by the screw-spindle.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ARTHUR LEWIS SNEED.

Witnesses:

W. H. MILLAR, OSWALD WV. GosBY. 

